The seven
highest summits of all continents within a glimpse of time to become world
record.

Vienna –
December 9th, 2007. Nine hours and ten minutes from the base camp to the
summit: Extreme alpinist Christian Stangl has reached Mount Vinson’s peak –
with it’s 4,892 m the highest mountain of the Antarctica. Thus the Austrian
has climbed the last peak of his „Seven Summits Speed-Tour“: He managed the
seven highest mountain giants in a record breaking time. All in all it took
the outstanding athlete 58 hours and 45 minutes to the summits of all seven
mountains: Vinson, Elbrus, Kilimanjaro, Aconcagua, Carstensz, McKinley and
Everest.

Christian
Stangl made it: After nine hours and ten minutes of skyrunning he reached the
highest point of the Antarctica last friday at around four p.m. local time.
The former record was held by Slovenian alpinists who made it in 19 hours.
Stangl has atomised this time.

Stangl
started from the base camp at an altitude of about 2,200 meters and at minus
15 degree Celsius. The first eight kilometers to the foot of the Vinson the
Styrian went by ski. From there he carried the skis on his shoulders put on
the crampons and continiued in fast pace uphill.

„No
problems, everything went accordig to schedule. Only on the shady side of the
mountain it was extremely uncomfortable as icicles grew out of my nose and
mouth,“ claims Stangl. 200 meters under the peak a steep and rocky wall had to
be managed. Finally there was the summit at 4,892 meters, at the comfortable
temperature of minus 15 degress, no wind, clear blue sky. An intensive
awareness of success and the pride of having conquered seven mountains in a
record breaking time.

„The
feeling was beyond description – all white around me, snow as far as you could
see, an amazing and exhiliarating view,“ Stangl continues. Then - time to go
back. To descend from the very top by ski , as initially planned was not
possible. On the foot of the rock Stangl put on his skies and speeded
downhill. After another two and a half hours Stangl reached a camp at the foot
of Mount Vinson, where an Austrian team of mountaineers was about to get
settled. The collegues welcomed him with standing ovations. The weather got
worse and worse. However, Stangl concludes „for a skyrun a tiny gap of good
weather is sufficient, and this is exactly what I was the case at the
Vinson.“

The „Seven
Summits“, the seven highest mountains of the continents, are what many
alpinists dream of. Stangl has now made them all: Vinson, Everest, Elbrus,
Kilimanjaro, Aconcagua, Carstenz and McKinley. And within times which most of
us can hardly even imagine, he is now keeping the world record for all of
them: 49 minutes for the Carstensz-Pyramid in Indonesia or 16 hours and 42
minutes for the Everest. In a total of 58 hours and ten minutes - the absolute
record time for all seven mountains. Just as a comparison: if one would add
all hours needed to reach those summits so far this would result in a total
500.

Christian
Stangl is Mr. Skyrun. A Skyrunner climbs alone without crew, artificial
oxygene and camps. He takes the fastest track against the clock. The Skyrunner
wears only light gear. Christian Stangls aim in skyrunning is to make each of
the highest mountains in a single day.